


wish

by whimsyappletea



Category: Vocaloid
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Be Careful What You Wish For, Cameos, Drama, Drama & Romance, F/M, Fantasy, Maids, Princes & Princesses, Romance, Spells & Enchantments, Time Skips, Unrequited Crush, Unrequited Love, Wish Fulfillment, Wishes, Witchcraft, Witches
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-08
Updated: 2016-05-08
Packaged: 2018-06-07 03:52:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,074
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6784045
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/whimsyappletea/pseuds/whimsyappletea
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“What’s my most precious person without her <i>soul</i>?”</p>
<p>—seven days can change your happiness forever. Lenrin.</p>
            </blockquote>





	wish

**Author's Note:**

> aaah my very own last-minute ffnet anniversary fic!! this was a _very_ fun story to write and definitely one of the highlights among my 2015 works (/* ovo)/*
> 
> i have a huge thing for magic and witches in general if you couldve already tell (cue will smith pose at _to believe in magic_ from back in 2014) - but this one is set in a different universe, so yay for magic and witches 2.0 heheheh
> 
> lenrin as usual, with onesided!lengumi and gratuitous lukarin hints (also possible gumilily??) thrown somewhere in there. not to mention all the cameos as various roles throughout the fic pffft

.  
.  
.

_The Wish Shop_ , as it’s written in gold flowing script on the front sign, can grant just _one_ wish of your choice, from growing wings to becoming the most beautiful person in the world—all you have to do is walk through that door.

The catch, however, is that the shop is owned by a crafty witch with powerful, devastating magic. Witches, as they say, never do anything for free; there’s always a price to pay.

Some people aren’t prepared for what their wishes truly cost.

As she stands before a faint outline shrouded in darkness, the girl can’t help but remember the hurried, wary whispers of worried townsfolk: _be careful of what you wish for._

“You ask for intelligence,” drawls a voice of tantalizing, dripping honey, before the willowy figure slinks forward from the shadows to reveal an ethereally beautiful lady with flowing pink hair. “And I, The Great Witch Luka, can grant you all the knowledge you will ever need. _But_ , in exchange...”

In the space of a heartbeat, she drapes her arms around the girl’s thin shoulders like a too-warm blanket. Murmurs, with gentle, ever-loving poison:

“I want your happiness.”

.

**wish**

_to those who were captured by her alluring magic,  
your times of joy are over._

.

_  
Day 1  
_

“There you go, buddy,” Len says, unfurling his palm to reveal a tiny bird. He sets it down onto a sturdy tree branch, watching as it blinks curiously at their surroundings. “Your leg’s finally healed, so you’re free to fly now.”

The bird chirps, as if thanking him, and takes off with the swift flap of its wings. Len laughs, squinting up at the sky until the creature is nothing more than a small dot moving in the distance. “Well, that’s that, time to climb down— _wah!_ ”

His leg slips against the branch holding his weight, causing him to lose his balance. Instinctively he scrambles to grab onto something, _anything_ that can soften his fall, but fails rather miserably—the world blurs into a kaleidoscope of colours for a couple of terrifying moments before he finally hits the ground with a dull thud.

“ _Ow_ , jeez...” Len mumbles, wincing as he nurses his sore backside. He gets up to dust himself off, looking down for any visible injures, hm, he’s got some scrapes here and there, nothing too serious, but he’s definitely going to get an earful if—

“Prince Len.”

—she catches him. Darn it.

“Ahaha, _hey_ , Rin...” He slowly turns to face a girl in her standard maid outfit. Her expression seems neutral as far as he can tell, but it doesn’t look promising. “Back from grocery shopping so soon?”

She narrows in on his dishevelled appearance. “What happened?”

From past experiences, lying only gets him a really mean punch to the shoulder and an hour-long lecture, so he opts to tell the truth. “I was, uh, releasing the bird we found a few days ago—you know, the one with a broken leg?”

“Ah.” Rin reaches for his arm, turning it this way and that. “Abrasions: superficial wounds to the epidermis. Most likely caused by a fall onto, from, or against a rough surface. You fell out of the tree, didn’t you, Prince Len? These need to be treated as soon as possible to avoid possible infections.”

He blinks once. Twice. Slaps a hand against the girl’s forehead without hesitation. “Are you feeling okay,” he asks urgently, his worry multiplying when he leans forward and she doesn’t even protest at their close proximity. He searches her eyes; they hold his without wavering and are perfectly clear.

What _isn’t_ clear is what’s going on with Rin.

Usually she’d be all over him by now, panicking over his dirty clothes, checking him up and down for scrapes no matter how small they are, chiding him for being so careless, what are you _doing_ , you’re the seventeen-year-old crown prince so you ought to at least _act_ like one—

“I’m perfectly fine, Prince Len,” says the girl, pivoting on one heel to head back inside. “I shall alert Ms Kokone to your medical needs, please head to the infirmary when you’re ready.”

“Rin, wait—”

She’s already gone, disappearing much like the tiny bird had earlier.

Len stares after her retreating back in the distance, one finger scratching his cheek in thought. Well, that was weird—maybe she’ll be back to normal soon enough.

.  
.

_“My happiness?”_

_“Yes.”_

_“Oh, uh, I see. May I ask why, though?”_

_The lady throws her head back in a laugh, the sound like a storm brewing in the distance. “You’re the first human brave enough to ask with such politeness, so why not?”_

.  
.

_  
Day 2  
_

“Prince Len? Earth to Prince Len?”

“ _Ah!_ ” He jolts and sits upright, batting away the hand hovering dangerously close to his face. “Y-yeah, I was listening!”

“And what did I say, exactly?”

“Uh...” Len laughs sheepishly at her deep sigh of disapproval, mustering his most pathetic, imploring expression. “I’m really sorry, Ms Megpoid! I’ll listen this time, promise!”

Gumi, better known as Ms Megpoid around the palace, levels him a stern look with raised eyebrows. “You’d better, if not I’ll have no choice but to tell Lily—that is, _Princess_ Lily.”

The boy winces, _sheesh_ , the dangers of his private tutor being best friends with his older sister. He gives her a lopsided smile, hoping it’s convincing enough. “I will, I will!”

Apparently it works, since she moves on with the lesson after a mildly exasperated eye-roll, but the smile on his face remains as he watches her with half-lidded eyes. Best friends with his sister or not, Gumi’s still the prettiest, smartest girl he knows.

Sure, he has a _miniscule_ crush on his private tutor, and it’ll only wreak havoc should anything happen, but hey, a teenage boy can _dream_ , right?

He’s never breathed a word about it so no one knows—except Rin. But Rin’s practically a part of him, Len reasons, since he’s known her since they were kids and they’d grown up together. She’s always been there to take care of him, both as his personal maid and as a close confidante.

Although she _can_ be a little weird sometimes, he muses. Just like yesterday. Rin’s never had any form of formal education, which is why he often spends time teaching her the terms he’s picked up from his lessons—

So where did those bombastic terms like ‘abrasions’ and ‘epidermis’ and—and _whatever_ come from, when even _he_ hasn’t heard of them before?

“Alright, that’s it for today’s lesson,” Gumi announces, packing away her papers into her bag and smiling wryly at the prince. “Complete pages thirty-three through forty-one and let me look over it on Friday, yeah?”

“ _Yeah_ ,” Len sighs dreamily. His thoughts of Rin fade easily as he bounces after his tutor, eager to talk to her about anything other than his study materials.

.  
.

_“See, my dear girl—humans, as I have observed, are foolishly greedy creatures. They want what they can’t have, and don’t want what they do,” Luka reveals with clear distaste in her expression. “So I exploit them, strip these wants bare and twist them in ways you can’t even begin to imagine.”_

_“That’s true,” she agrees. “But what does my happiness gotta do with any of this?”_

_The glint in her eyes and the edge of her grin conceal something terribly bitter._

.  
.

_  
Day 3  
_

“Gear up,” Len states, throwing the girl a helmet—followed by a protective vest and a pair of gloves for good measure. You can never be too safe with a klutz like Rin. “Let’s ride.”

“Alright.”

Weird behaviour or not, at least he can appreciate the fact that Rin doesn’t ask questions, even as they get ready to head out at three in the afternoon without any prior notice.

It doesn’t take long for the pair to ride their respective horses away from the palace, manoeuvring through the thick forest like a map they know by heart. The journey is quiet, apart from the steady _clump-clump-clump_ of hooves and the rustling of trees as they gallop past.

They dismount at a familiar clearing, where flowers grow in abundance and the wind tousles your hair in an almost playful manner. “I was thinking about practicing my swordsmanship,” Len muses aloud, rummaging through his bags for his prized weapons. “Spar with me, maybe?”

Rin blinks. Says, with uncharacteristic bluntness, “Weird question, considering you’ve dragged me all the way here before asking.”

Her usual response would’ve been a cheeky come-at-me grin, but still he swats at the girl and tosses her a spare sheathed sword. She catches it firmly with rather speedy reflexes; the young prince has been teaching her the art of self-defence as much as he can over the years— _just in case anything happens_ , he always insists. “Hush, you. Now come on.”

.

The sun is just beginning to sink into the horizon when Len finally calls for a break, panting from exertion and dripping with sweat. She’d gone all out today, much to his surprise—since when had she become a decent swordsperson?

Rin sets the weapon down on the ground and glances up at the pretty hues of the sky, at the sunlight dissipating into the evening to come. “Sunset: the daily disappearance of the sun due to the earth's rotation,” she remarks. “The intense colours are dependent on unique conditions, such as airborne particles in the atmosphere and light wavelengths.”

He wrinkles his nose, bopping the girl lightly over the head with an uneasy laugh. “Jeez, what’s up with you, lately? Where are you getting all that info?” At her absent stare, he sighs and hangs his head in defeat for now.

For a moment it’s peaceful, and the boy stuffs the swords back into the bags securely before stepping forward to stand beside Rin.

“It’s beautiful,” she offers once more, clasping her hands behind her back and rocking on her heels. Her expression is blank, like a plain canvas without its palette. “The aesthetical qualities of the warm colour combination is truly one of nature’s wonders. It’s beautiful.”

The words echo in his mind, and as Len stares at the orange-lit profile of his maid, it suddenly knifes him in the gut that Rin is, and has always been, simply, randomly, impossibly—

Beautiful.

“Yeah,” he says, uncertain of the way his heart feels like it’s jumping to his throat and threatening to spill out. This hasn’t happened before. “Yeah.”

.  
.

_“ You, on the other hand, are different from most humans I’ve come across. You don’t have a single greedy bone in your body,” states Luka rather frankly. “And there’s nothing you wouldn’t do to protect your greatest happiness.” When the girl stays silent, neither agreeing nor denying anything, she adds with a sneer, “Even if he’s nothing but a terrible, selfish little boy.”_

_“This wish is mine to fulfill, and mine only,” she finally interjects, holding the witch’s eyes bravely. “He’s got nothing to do with this.”_

_“Oh, darling, but he does.” Luka smiles, sweet as sin. “You’re in love with him, are you not?”_

.  
.

_  
Day 4  
_

Len has to leave for town for a small meeting with a couple of his father’s political friends, and naturally his personal maid comes in tow. It bores him to tears and the power struggles are painfully obvious in every sentence fired to each other, but as the crown prince, it’s his duty to attend.

Wouldn’t it be better if this ‘duty’ of his entitled him to— _gee, I don’t know_ —take a tour around the town itself to learn what needs to be changed, what needs to be maintained, and the general livelihoods of the people?

It makes a lot more sense than to sit around listening to rich people complain about rich people problems, Len grouses, but keeps most of these thoughts to himself for fear of his father’s wrath.

The boy can’t leave fast enough when the meeting comes to an end at long last, immediately surveying the area outside for Rin. He catches sight of blonde hair from the corner of his eye, and—

“Big sis, big sis, what about this word?” asks a little boy, pointing out a word in the scuffed-up book he’s holding. They’re sitting on the porch of a modest house, and to one side there’s a small stack of books that appear equally age-worn and sort of familiar to Len.

She leans forward, drinking in the words on the page. A few other kids around his age are gathered behind her, peering over her shoulder to see. “Fairy godmother: a female character who has magical powers and appears when someone’s in need. Essentially a good person.”

A girl claps her hands, her gaze innocent and bright. “Magical powers?”

Another girl perks up. “Good person?”

The first boy who’d asked about the word reaches up to touch Rin’s face, grazing her cheek with a small hand. “Are you our fairy godmother, big sis?” he asks in wonder, eyes bright.

“No, I’m just a palace maid,” she says quite matter-of-factly, and the boy deflates, looking a touch disappointed. She pats the boy on the head with a gentle hand. “But _may_ be a fairy godmother might appear before you if you really, really need her.”

The town children squeal in excitement, buzzing over Rin’s statement and somehow jostling the book from her to continue reading the story. She doesn’t seem to mind, side-stepping her way out of the circle of kids and dusting herself off.

“Nice save back there,” Len remarks, making his presence known.

Rin would normally jump at his sudden appearance, but now she just directs him a bland stare, as if expecting him. “They’re still young,” she says. “They have yet to learn the absence of magic and improbable fairy-tales at their age, so why not preserve their childhood naiveté just a little longer?”

It’s something Rin would say, but... not quite as eloquently put. She had a way of talking that catches your attention, with her eyes lit up like a pocketful of sunshine, her gestures animated and larger-than-life. The knife in his gut twists a little deeper as he realizes this, but he manages to reply, “Ah. Well, where did you get the books?”

“The royal library.” At his strange look, she elaborates, “The king had ordered for old books to be thrown out, and I’d caught sight of a couple of young children’s books, so I thought they shouldn’t go to waste.”

It’s still her, Len thinks, seeking her eyes once more, her kindness is still there.

But that’s not the Rin he—

_(Loves?)_

—knows.

.  
.

_She bristles. “That—”_

_“Doesn’t matter?” Luka’s laugher is like haunting quicksilver. “Sweetie, you have to understand: intelligence only sheds light on things you’d be better off staying blissfully unaware of. Smart humans are those who have seen how cruel and unfair the world can be, and sooner or later they lose a part of themselves... never to get it back._

_“Would you be happy, figuring out when exactly your greatest happiness has to marry? Would you be happy, wishing him all the best while knowing full well you’re just as brilliant—but still never, ever good enough?”_

_When the girl hesitates, she drifts closer, whispering with a note of pity in her ear, “I just want to spare you the grief of unrequited love that comes with your newfound intelligence.”_

.  
.

_  
Day 5  
_

“Prince Len? Yoo-hoo, anybody in there? Prince Len? Ugh, for the love of— _Prince Len?_ ”

He startles, falling out of his chair with a loud crash. Gumi looms over his sprawled figure, the deep furrow of her brows pronounced and foreboding. “Seriously, what’s wrong with you this week,” she demands, perturbed. “You’ve been spacing out a lot, especially today—is something going on here that I don’t know about?”

“No,” Len mumbles, shaking his head more to clear his head than to emphasise his denial. He’s not even trying to wheedle his way out of this mess. “No, it’s not true...”

“What’s not true?”

“I don’t... her... that’s... culous...”

The tutor blinks. Len’s obviously very incoherent and not in any shape to answer her, with him shaking his head ever-so-often and looking like he’s on the verge of a meltdown. It doesn’t help his case when she notices a bright red flush spreading across his cheeks and down his jawline, neck, ears.

Puberty and hormones, maybe? Gumi wonders, trying to supress her disbelief as she says, “We can’t have our lessons with you... _like this_ , so let’s call it a day, alright? Get some rest.”

And a grip, she adds sardonically, before taking her leave.

.

He watches Gumi go, but doesn’t feel a thing. _Why_ doesn’t he feel anything?

What happened to the attempts to get her attention, badgering her with questions he’d already known the answers to so that she’d lean close to teach them to him? What happened to the thoughts of confessing, of starting an illicit, torrid love affair that will spell their doom?

And why, of all things, is his head filled with nothing but _Rin_ , his personal maid?

Rin’s always been _there_ , Len knows. She’s been there ever since his mother had gone into town and brought back with her a little girl no taller than her knee, telling everyone that she’d found her crying alone in an alley. So with them being around each other all the time, it’s only natural for him to know her like the back of his hand, to _expect_ her to be there.

But he’d taken her for granted, and now he doesn’t even know his closest companion anymore. He doesn’t know this—this _ghost_ , who’d stare where Rin would’ve smiled, who’d rattle off facts and definitions where Rin would’ve just laughed without a care in the world.

Len can live without his private tutor and his studies, but he cannot— _will not_ —live without Rin by his side.

He might be in love with her, the boy thinks miserably, curling up on the glossy parquet floor of the study room. For Gumi he’d probably only loved the _idea_ of being in love, because it hadn’t hurt him.

Not like this, with his gut twisting the knife in a little too tight, a little too deep.

The girl’s most likely holed up in the library since she’s done with her duties for now, as head chef Meiko had told him before his lesson with Gumi. She’ll be cooped up in there as soon as she has the time, apparently. Everyone can tell that she’s been a little odd lately, but they all assume she just needs some rest.

Len honestly doubts that a good night’s sleep can cure all of Rin’s recent behaviour—but he has to try to bring back the old Rin somehow.

(Even if it might be too late by the time he figures it out.)

.  
.

_The witch glides back a little, observing her with keen blue eyes. She hasn’t so much as moved an inch, or tried to escape her fate; there’s a fierce set to her jaw, an unlit match in her gaze that makes Luka itch to set her aflame just to see how she burns._

_“You are far braver than I give credit for, my dear girl,” Luka muses. “Are you not at all afraid of what happens to you after I take away your happiness?”_

_She lifts her chin. Gives a smile that reaches her eyes and brightens the room. “Eheheh, I’m sure you’re gonna take care of my happiness real well, Ms Luka.”_

_Her statement startles a laugh from the lady, cementing her decision for what she’s about to say next—something that hasn’t happened in years in her little shop. “I like your determination, child, and for that, I shall offer you a bargain. Will you listen?”_

.  
.

_  
Day 6  
_

The royal library is a place that most of the illiterate staff members would call ‘the sanctuary for the learned’. With book spines lining all the shelves in every aisle and a secondary area that’s accessible via step-ladder, it’s the perfect paradise for quiet book-lovers.

Which is the exact _opposite_ of Rin’s character, but here she is, nestled comfortably on one of the many beanbag chairs scattered around and burying her nose into a book that looks far more advanced than she can handle.

“Hey, Rin,” he chimes as brightly as he can, sliding into the beanbag chair beside hers. Without moving from her position, she flicks her gaze up to him in acknowledgement. “What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be outside?”

_(“I know, right? Jeeeeez, it’s so boring in here! How do you stand sitting here for hours on end?”)_

“I’m reading a collection of popular poems by various famous authors. The temperature outside is currently 39 degrees Celsius; it’s not optimal for outdoor activities due to the increased chances of dehydration and heat stroke.”

Len swallows. This isn’t going to be easy. “Um. Okay—Rin, look at me.” She glances at her book, presumably to take note of the page number, before closing it softly. When her eyes finally meet his, he says, “What happened on Monday?”

_(“Sheesh, don’t dilly-dally and beat around the bush, Len, out with it!”)_

The girl cocks her head, like a tectonic plate sliding into place. “I don’t understand.”

“You were fine all the way up till Monday, the day you always go grocery shopping on your own.” He’s thought about it, thought about it long and hard, and the conclusion he’s reached is: “Something happened then, and I want to know what it is.”

_(“Huuuuuh? Are you sure you’re okay?”)_

Rin frowns, and it’s probably the most amount of emotion he’s seen on her face over the past few days. “There’s nothing to know if nothing’s occurred in the first place. Len, what’s this really about?”

You, he wants to cry out, it’s about _you_. “N-nothing! It’s just—I want you to know you can come to me for anything. _Any_ thing, you hear me?” He ignores the way his voice cracks in the middle of his sentence. “Don’t keep secrets from me, it’s not cool.”

_(“Pffft, what are you saying? Oh, poop, I gotta go do my chores! See you later, Len!”)_

“Of course.” She stands, smooths down her frilly uniform skirts, and gives him a small bow. “Now, if you’ll excuse me.”

The girl’s given him answers that aren’t even _close_ to what he’d predicted she’ll say, and he’s not sure if she’ll be that same Rin he knows—and loves—ever again.

Len lets his shoulders slump, and wishes the knife in his gut doesn’t feel quite as heavy as his heartache.

.  
.

_“He has seven days to realize what the loss of your happiness means to him, and prove that he’s worthy of earning it back,” declares the witch. “Once the night of day seven passes, you’ll never recover your happiness again.”_

_She nods as she listens intently, and asks, “But how will he know how to prove himself?”_

_“Oh, trust me, sweetheart, he will,” comes the vague, dry drawl in reply. “And if he does manage to do so—though I sincerely doubt this, considering that buffoon boy of yours—I’ll return you your happiness, while your newfound wealth of knowledge shall remain intact. This, I can promise you.”_

_The girl weighs her options. Looks up, and grins with unwavering faith._

_“I accept your terms, Ms Luka. Now, please—grant me my wish.”_

.  
.

_  
Day 7  
_

Len’s working on the town’s monthly finance reports when the sound of loud, rapid footfall out in the hallway catches his attention.

Before he can rise from his chair to see what the commotion’s about, the door to his room slams open, revealing head butler Kaito pale as a sheet and gasping for breath.

“Kaito, what—”

“An attack,” Kaito cries. “There was an _attack_.”

The boy’s heart grows cold.

.

_“Princess Lily and Ms Megpoid had just arrived back from dinner and were getting down from their carriage when this— hooded figure lunged out of nowhere, brandishing a knife.”_

Kaito leads him through a zigzag path down their many hallways, and for once Len curses the palace for being so extravagantly huge.

_“Everyone was caught off-guard, and no one managed to catch the assailant in time because they vanished as abruptly as they’d appeared. It was like magic, or something.”_

He’s already been brought up to speed about the situation, but—

_“I haven’t been informed of the extent of the causalities just yet.”_

Irrationally, his first thought had been Rin, despite the fact that the people mentioned were only his sister and the private tutor. Surely, he thinks with a sort of hollow conviction, _surely_ Rin shouldn’t be there.

When they finally reach the infirmary, his eyes search the area wildly, spotting Lily and Gumi sitting together, unharmed—

Before landing on the small, blonde figure lying motionless on one of the beds.

“Rin,” he starts, all his worst fears confirmed as he runs forward. Head nurse Kokone stands in his way, preventing him from disturbing her patient, and Kaito is quick to assist her. “ _Rin!_ ”

“Len, stop it,” his sister orders, despite the waver in her stern tone. “You’re causing a scene.”

“Why is she here,” the boy demands instead of obeying her will, looking distraught yet hell-bent as Kaito holds him back. “ _She wasn’t supposed to be here!_ ”

“Rin saved us,” Gumi pipes up thinly. “She—she was writing down notes about the flowers in the garden when the attacker appeared, and she came running to take the full brunt of the slash.” She swallows. “She didn’t even hesitate.”

“It wasn’t that serious, Ms Megpoid. Please don’t make it sound like I’m currently deceased.”

All of them whip their heads in the direction of the new speaker. Kokone’s the only one who manages to find her voice in the ensuing silence.

“R-Rin! You’re awake!”

.

After a check-up to confirm the maid’s stability—the knife wound isn’t as deep as Kokone had initially feared, thankfully, and will heal to leave nothing more than a scar down her chest and a bad memory of the attack—Len’s next immediate course of action is to kick everyone out of the infirmary and lock the door behind him.

He takes a seat on Rin’s bed. Stares at her with quiet condemnation.

She barely bats an eyelid, propped up against a bunch of pillows to help her sit upright. “Prince Len, you heard Ms Kokone yourself. It’s an incised wound—nothing medical treatment and recovery time won’t heal.”

“That’s not the point,” he barks, not even attempting to rein back his temper. “What you did was _dangerous_! What on earth were you thinking?!”

“I wasn’t,” she says crisply. “Protecting the princess and your tutor were of utmost importance. As a palace maid, I’m always last priority.” Rin isn’t even trying to sound bitter, or even self-deprecating—just telling it how it is and being brutally, brutally honest about it. “I don’t mind getting hurt if it means your beloved ones are safe.”

She’s always been like this, even with her peculiar actions as of late: compassionate, selfless, and everything he’s not.

What did he ever do to deserve her?

He reaches over and envelops her in a hug, his broad shoulders trembling subtly. The fear that he’d lost her had been so _real_. “Rin, I love you.”

A pause, before:

“Love: a variety of different feelings, states of emotion and attitudes, ranging from—”

“No,” Len pleads, desperation leaking into his voice. “No, Rin, just— _stop._ ” She complies obediently, and he leans away a fraction, making the most terrible realization that her gaze is dull and holds nothing.

She feels _nothing_ for what he’d just told her. Absolutely nothing.

The knife has slashed through his gut, blood spilling with too many regrets and words unsaid. “What’s my most precious person without her _soul_?” he chokes out, vision blurring as he pulls back against his chest. “Rin, I love you. _I love you._ ”

_Please._

In a last-ditch attempt to bring the girl back, Len presses his lips against hers, just for a moment, just for a heartbeat, just as the moon begins to rise to its place in the night sky.

.  
.

_Luka tips her head back as she drinks something out of a clear vial, before turning to the girl and cupping her cheek with a smirk. “This won’t hurt one bit,” she coos, her breath appearing in eerie green puffs as she seals her lips with her own in a searing kiss._

_“Good luck, sweetheart. You’re going to need it.”_

.  
.

Rin gasps sharply against his lips, the light in her eyes shifting back into focus and her whole world slamming into her all at once: someone’s kissing her, there’s a throbbing pain in her bosom, something stiff is wrapped around her chest like bandages, where is she now oh god what is _happening_ —

She recognizes the familiar, comforting scent that’s all Len, and relaxes in his arms, returning his kiss with a small amount of hesitance and a great deal of affection.

“Rin, I love you,” he repeats when they part from air. “I love you.”

The girl stares at him, wide-eyed, before everything clicks in her head. She smiles like the stars that shine, and says, “I love you too.”

Len hiccups, laughter and relief brimming in his eyes. Hugs her tight as he realizes that yes, without a doubt, Rin’s back.

She’s back, and he’s glad.

.

_no need for a magic to stop time, no spell can achieve what we feel—_  
love bounding through every hour,  
joy lights a new day. 

.

**omake:**   


“Ah, what a pity, though. You didn’t get the happiness you coveted so much for your spell.”

“I wouldn’t call it a _waste_ , Miku,” says the witch with a scoff, raising her eyebrows at her apprentice. Miku’s often out gathering materials, so she hadn’t been around when the girl walked in a week ago. “A witch always keeps her promises, after all. Besides—even though I, The Great Witch Luka, can grant any kind of wish customers want here, it’s up to _them_ to make the best of it in the end.”

Luka sets down the knife and the hooded cape. Allows herself to blend into the darkness once more, and smiles with an odd, almost sincere softness.

“What wish do you think shall be granted next?”

.  
 **owari.**  
.  
.  
.

**Author's Note:**

>  **disclaimer:** i do not own Vocaloid, or Megurine Luka’s _Witch Hunt_ (second translyrics by JubyPhonic).


End file.
